'Not the way to run House': Dhankhar Adjourns Rajya Sabha Till March 13, Warns Kharge

Rajya Sabha was adjourned after Opposition leaders disrupted the House, demanding revocation of the suspension of a Congress MP and setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe allegations against the Adani Group.

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha proceedings were on Monday (February 13) adjourned till March 13 with Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar telling the Opposition parties  that it is "not the way to run the House.

Rajya Sabha was first briefly adjourned in the morning as Opposition leaders disrupted the House, demanding revocation of the suspension of Congress MP Rajani Patil and setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe allegations against the Adani Group.

Chairman Dhankar was also upset at Leader of Opposition and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for alleging that the government was putting pressure on the chair.

#BudgetSession2023#RajyaSabha adjourned till 11:00 AM on March 13.

The second part of the #BudgetSession will commence on March 13th. pic.twitter.com/0CDHVl3Kae — SansadTV (@sansad_tv) February 13, 2023

Kharge was speaking about the suspension of Patil, who was suspended from the House for the remainder of the Budget session for circulating an unauthorised video of house proceedings. He was also speaking on the expunction of his part of speech by the chair during the motion of thanks on President's Address.

"LoP, you've indicated in so many words that the Chair is acting under pressure. These words are expunged. You are forfeiting your right to hold the floor of the House... every time you are saying that the Chair is acting under pressure," Dhankhar said.

"Deliberate obstruction is being created and this is not the way to run the House. We have already wasted a lot of time. If the House is subjected to such disruption, I will be constrained to act as per the expectation of people," the Vice President said.

He also warned several opposition MPs, who had trooped into the well of the House.

#BudgetSession2023: Matters being raised with the permission of the Chair in #RajyaSabha#BudgetSession #ZeroHour

Watch Live: https://t.co/JRvMBCO1ki pic.twitter.com/NULbdP4wV4 — SansadTV (@sansad_tv) February 13, 2023

The House will now meet at 11 am on March 13 during the second part of the Budget Session.

Leaders of 14 Opposition parties meet to chalk out strategy in Parliament

Earlier in the day, leaders of 14 Opposition parties held a meeting to discuss their joint strategy in Parliament.

The leaders of Congress, RJD, DMK, NCP, JDU, AAP, and Left parties met in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament complex.

"Parliament should be the platform of discussion, debate and honest deliberations. Parliament should not be used as a platform to stifle the voice of the opposition. Opposition parties met today to discuss further strategy in this regard," Kharge said in a tweet and shared a picture from the meeting.

Parliament should be the platform of discussion, debate and honest deliberations.

Parliament should not be used as a platform to stifle the voice of the opposition.

Opposition parties met today to discuss further strategy in this regard. pic.twitter.com/eBKP6HZngd — Leader of Opposition, Rajya Sabha (@LoPIndia) February 13, 2023

The meeting came in the wake of a continued attack on the Narendra Modi-led government over the Adani issue and the demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into it.

Adani Group stocks have taken a beating on the bourses after US-based short-selling firm Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share-price manipulation, against the business conglomerate.

The Adani Group has dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.

(With agency inputs)